Exhibition Pop art

Pop art exhibition in the Thyssen museum in Madrid

The Thyssen museum, Paeso del Prado, 8, 21014 Madrid

                                     Look Mickey by Roy Lichtenstein in 1961, oil on canvas

On holiday I saw an interesting pop art virtual exhibition on the website of the Thyssen Museum in Madrid. The exhibition was in 2014 but we can find it on this website:  http://www2.museothyssen.org/microsites/exposiciones/2014/mitos-del-pop/vv/index_in.htm

You can also read the magazine where you can see and understand a lot of things on this pop art exhibition333:

 http://pdigital.museothyssen.org/index.html?revista=108575115&pagina=13902

I saw a lot of artists and paintings in relation with pop art especially the famous Andy Warhol who introduced pop art in 1956. The exhibition was organized in themes:  Collage advertising Comics, emblems, myths, portraits, landscapes interiors still life, urban eroticism, history painting and finally art about art.

Concerning emblems, we can talk about Peter Blake and Jasper Johns, who appropriated several universally recognizable objects in the late 1950s. We can see in this exhibition the brands Coca Cola, Campbells and Brillo.

In 1970, the portraits style was coming and Warhol, Allen Jones and David Hockney did a lot of portraits and self- portraits.

Allen Jones also did a few landscapes interior still life paintings with other pop artists inspired by the new consumer culture that was developing at the time.

Hollywood was a mythmaking machine because of a lot of celebrities like Marilyn Monroe and her famous portrait by Warhol. Another artist Alex Katz was one of the first to explore the fetishistic possibilities afforded by cinematic close-ups. All these pop artists were the media power of the great American idols.

Urban eroticism began in the middle of the 20th Century and it was a lot of women's paintings, without clothes.

Historical events and certain contemporary affairs were also an essential part of Pop iconography in the middle of the 20's century.

And finally, Andy Warhol and other artists modified a lot of paintings such as Velazquez’s Las Meninas in the subject art about art.

I want to say briefly a definition of myth and heroes. A myth is a story that may or may not be true. There may be records or other proof that they happened, but at least some parts of myths may be true. Some myths may have started as true stories but as people retold them some parts may have been changed by mistake, or to make them more interesting. Myth includes the legends of our history, our religions, stories of how the world was created, and our heroes. These stories have symbolic power, and this may be a major reason why they survive as long as they do, sometimes for thousands of years. A hero is a person who is admired for their courage, outstanding achievements, or noble qualities. It can be the main character in a book or a film or a person with superhuman qualities. It can also be a modern- day hero, a person who has performed a heroic act or simply our own personal hero, our role model, who we look up to. 

I would now like to introduce one example in the exhibition that I really like.

Marlon Brando in 1966 by Andy Warhol, painting portrait

It is a Warhol's painting called Marlon. It's a 1966 painting and enters into pop art myth because the person is very famous.

In general pop art can shock viewers because there are a lot of bright colors and freedom. On the one hand, we may assert that in 1960 this art was new and technology was in progress. At the time people didn't think that a can or comics could be exhibited.

This work by Wahrol became famous because during that time, icons were very important and models for people. Wahrol immortalizes Marlon as an icon of the golden area. This is very simple on the one hand but on the other hand it's an attractive work too because for that time the young man in this painting was a rebel. Colors are not so aggressive in this painting but beautiful and new.

Another famous portrait by Wahrol is that of Marilyn and I think that you all know this painting. To me, Warhol was a myth because most of these paintings are known by everybody, and in my point of view, I think that he is the definition of pop art's artists.

                                                        

                                      Andy Warhol "Diptyque Marilyn" in 1962,silkscreen

This painting can show the new area that is beginning, a new vision in our world.  

I am a student of Terminale L and I'm 18. I love art and exhibitions. I lived 4 years in Milan and now 1 year in Madrid. Before being 14 years old, I was in Paris, so I have seen a lot of paintings. For example, this is another painting I like a lot.

 

                                                    Moonwalk by Andy Warhol in 1969, picture

Andy Warhol died in 1987 just after this painting. He was a leading figure in pop art, this explains that we can see a lot of his paintings in this exhibition. We find artistic expression , celebrities culture and advertising in his works.

Moonwalk was published in 1987, we don't find his signature because Warhol died before sign in it. The artist painted Neil Armstrong's photograph of Edwin Buzz Aldrin, Jr walking on the moon in 1969 for the first time, during the Apollo 11 mission. He captures the fantasy of the moon walk. There are three series of this famous image.

I chose this painting because it represents a historic time and Armstrong was a hero because he was the first man on the moon, he represents the new age, the evolution of history. Colors are also very aggressive so it's an attractive painting.  We can note also the courage of artists who dare something that is not ordinary. This is very impressive to me.

 In my view nothing is missing in this exhibition, it is very complete. It's simple and also complex although this type of art is not my favourite.

I hope you will want to see this virtual exhibition and discover this great world of pop art.

If you want to see a real exhibit, paintings on pop art, sculptures and prints, more than sixty works will be presented for the first time in Paris, at the Musée Maillol, from the 22 September 2017 to the 21 January 2018.